Fan Inspiration

Just a quick thought before getting back to working toward deadline.

I got my first fan letter for SHIFTING PASSIONS from a self-identified straight male reader a few weeks ago and I’m still floating on the high from it!

He read it on his wife’s computer out of curiosity and quote: “absolutely loved it”. He was concerned about the male-male elements but said that the three characters blended and flowed in a way that the male-male issue wasn’t an issue at all.

Knowing that in just 15k words I was able to bring him far enough into my world that he was more concerned about the characters and their relationship rather than any gender involved…It was just what I needed going into books two and three of the larger series. :)

To my fellow writers, what fan feedback have you had that just lifted your spirits or inspired you in your writing?

To our readers, what kind of feedback have you given your favorite authors after they’ve brought you into their worlds?

~X

It's the most wonderful (chocolate) time of the year

Or it will be on Monday—Easter Monday, my favorite day of the year. That’s the day Easter candy goes on sale for half price—marshmallow Peeps, crystal sugar diorama eggs and my personal favorite, dark chocolate bunnies. I’m getting all gooey just thinking about it.

Which is entirely appropriate considering chocolate’s reputation as an aphrodisiac. As with most edible sex aids, nobody’s quite sure how the connection between chocolate and sex arose, but it seems to have been there from the beginning. Both the Aztec goddess and Mayan god of fertility were associated with the cocoa tree and the beverage known as xocolatl.

The conquistadors who brought the drink home to Europe didn’t care about that. The beverage’s stimulating qualities (both in terms of its energizing effects and its ability to lubricate polite conversation) and its profit-making potential struck them far more important—not to mention allowed them to distance it from all that nasty human sacrifice stuff. Then came the glorious inventions of Joseph S. Fry (the first true chocolate bar) and Rodolphe Lindt (the process which transformed gritty chocolate into the luscious, lubricious Newtonian fluid it is today).

Modern scientists talk about the way the various compounds in chocolate affect mood and blood pressure. Personally, I think the answer’s a lot simpler, at least for those of us living in the chocolate paradise otherwise known as the 21st century. The stuff’s a feast for the senses.

It’s beautiful. Consider the divine darkness of semi-sweet, the friendly brown of milk chocolate and the glossy creaminess of the white. Consider the aroma. I think heaven must smell like the wind blowing just the right way through Hershey, PA. Then there’s the taste—complex, rich and oh so decadent—and its divine viscosity. So creamy. So begging for the faint tang of salt that comes from licking it off your lover’s skin. Chocolate-covered pretzels can’t even come close.

Then there’s Johnny Depp in Chocolat… That deserves a blog all to itself. ;-) But until I get to it, happy eating!

I NEED A HERO!

*cues Shrek music*


Seriously, don’t we all? But the question is: What makes a hero? Must he be tall? Have claws, paws, and teeth? Be darkly handsome and edgy? Is he the strong, supportive compliment to that spunky heroine or the take-charge alpha that steps in and sets the world to rights?

Or, here’s a twist – is he the geeky Charlie from Numbers with his own unique twist on how to use his attributes to win the day?

As a writer, the heroic elements of human nature fascinate me. We each bring something new to the discussion, but the truth is…while heroic archetypal elements remain the same, our own personal version of our hero filters into our work.

This is an ongoing discussion among me and my Cookie Monster friends. When I was single, I actually had a list of requirements – written and publicly debated by my friends – about what the perfect man was. But doesn’t every single woman?

One of my friends has a height requirement and freely admits that while she has dated men shorter than her ideal and liked them well enough, it’s hard for her to see an “ever after.” For her, it’s a deal breaker. Being a writer herself, she also admits that while she doesn’t necessarily base her heroes on her personal ideal, they always seem to come out tall.

It made me start thinking…

As writers, how many of us do that? Those few elements of our personal ideal that we just can’t shake? One of the things that is consistent in my own fictional heroes is that yes, they are tall (and no, my husband is not) and they all have the strong supportive streaks. My heroes take charge when it’s needed, but they generally compliment the heroine.

Does that make me a control freak? Do I cast myself as the heroine in my books? Well, maybe if it means I get to fantasize about the hero a little…

What about you? What makes YOUR personal hero?

Spring Training

"Anyone who thinks they can't make a difference because they're small has never tried to sleep in a room with a mosquito."
~ HH. The Dalai Lama

I don’t know of many women who like baseball, but I am a fan. Not a rabid fan, but I do like to sit in the evenings with my husband and watch the Cubs or Sox play. I used to be an Astros fan but after last year’s dismal performance I’ve started rooting along with my husband’s favorite two teams.

Now that spring training for them is nearly over and the preseason games have begun (i.e. the Cubs vs. the Astro’s this past week) it has occurred to me that as a writer and a woman who has steadily increased her girth over the past two years, it was time for spring training for myself as well.

Of course it’s not all about the vanity. Now that Mercer’s Bayou is about to go into print, and I already have at least one bookstore wanting me to do a book signing, and the fact that the girls at our insurance company were so thrilled about the book coming out that they treated me like a virtual rock star (much to my embarrassment) and I have a writer’s conference to attend at the end of this month, it was time for me to spruce up a bit. After all, I have to make a good impression. Not only am I appearing for my sake but I’ll be representing Samhain as well.

For appearances sake, I’ll put on some damned make up.

So I’ve begun spring training. Not just with the body, the new food regimen, the yoga and walking the dog twice a day (she’s getting out of shape too) but with my writing and promoting as well.

In order to get my name out as well as to try new writing venues, I’ve been entering various writing contests. In February I entered three, in March, four, and I am currently writing a mystery novella for the Nero Wolfe Black Orchid Contest. It’s been a challenge, but a fun one, trying to see how far I can go with my work. I’m trying different genres, trying new things with language and probably most importantly, spending more time with my art. Instead of goofing off online, I am actually writing, working up to seven or eight hours a day trying to improve my art.

As for promoting, I am working on new venues for that as well. One of the things I have planned is a Café Press store where you can buy cups and t shirts, stationary and greeting cards. I’m blogging more and in more places, and of course, there’ll be real time book signings and readings.

So I think my spring training is well underway. And because of the preparations I’m making now, I look forward to a great summer season.

What are you doing for spring training?

Dabwaha

If anyone has been following Dabwaha recently, you'll know that Patricia Briggs's Iron Crossed beat out Joanna Bourne's The Spymaster's Lady to win, though not by a lot.

I actually voted to have Patricia Briggs's Cry Wolf win, just fyi. But I happen to be a big fan of both finalists.

Briggs has been writing fantastic urban fantasy for a while. Her world has werewolves and coyote shifters (the main female protag) and vampires and witches and many other beings. Each type of person is fully realized and well-thought-out. No type is wholly bad, or wholly good. The Mercy Thompson series allows Briggs to explore these different parts of her world because Mercy is a coyote, not really a part of any one society, though she has close ties to werewolves because she was raised by their leader. (Cry Wolf is part of Briggs's Charles and Anna series and is more closely focused on werewolves. Since I love werewolves, that's great too.)

Brigg's books have romantic elements, but they're not romance.

The Spymaster's Lady is certainly romance. It's fantastically written with close attention paid to detail, as well as language. There are some clever twists and I completely fell for the heroine and her ingeniuty. I don't read a lot of historical romance, but when I do and I love it, I really love it.

Anyway, there were a lot of good books listed for Dabwaha and I'm going to try to read a few more of them than I have, especially Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas and The Price of Desire by Jo Goodman. Both Dear Author and Smart Bitches ran Dabwaha, and they'll probably run it next year. I'll be keeping an eye out for it. It was a lot of fun!

A Few of My Favorite Things

Last month when I was here I talked about my good luck in landing a temporary job at an elementary school library. I just finished my first full week, and I LOVE IT. I mean, I get to read to children AND help introduce them to books they might not have read before. The fact that I know so many of the newer authors helps too :).

It's gotten me thinking. I know a lot of romance authors talk about the romance writers they read when they were younger that inspired them to write romance. I'm not a big romance reader, but I did read a lot when I was younger, and when I look back, it's not really surprising that many of my favorite books were of a fantasy bend. So I thought I'd list a few of my favorite childhood books :

The Witches, Roald Dahl: I think I took this book out of the library about a million times when I was in elementary school. Even better than Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I adored this book. I mean, what's not to love about a group of bald women with no toes who turn children into rats? This is classic children's entertainment!

A Wrinkle in Time, Madeline L'Engle: My copy, which is probably in a box in my father's attic, is yellowed and dog-eared. Actually I love the whole series, but the first was the best, and not just because the first book begins, "It was a dark and stormy night". I identified with Meg in a big way, although I had something in common with Charles Wallace too. I rooted for her through the whole series. As an adult, I cherish the fact the book was rejected something like 23 times, often for being "too sci-fi" for the children's market.

The Westing Game, Ellen Raskin: Another that I took home many times from my school library, this little novel has such great plot twists that it never got old. I actually have a copy here in my home library and I read it from time to time to remind myself how great it is. It's a mystery, not a fantasy, but if you've read any of the Library of Athena books, you know how I love a good mystery.

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L. Konigsburg: Not strictly fantasy, also more of a mystery, but a fabulous adventure story. Who wouldn't want to hide out in a museum? I was so happy when I discovered this was being re-issued last year in a new edition that I pre-ordered a copy from Amazon. It totally deserved the Newberry Award that it won.

These are just four that I think of fondly, but there were SO many more - books by Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary and other authors I can't think of, but when I see the covers I get a warm feeling of happiness. Books were a big part of my childhood, and I'm so glad that I get the chance not only to write books that they love, but to help them (at least for a little while) discover new worlds to explore.

I'd like to give a quick shout-out to my fellow inkslingers over at The Enchanted Inkpot. It's a new community of children's and young adult fantasy writers. Stop by and say hi!

(and just one month until The Ankh of Isis comes out in paperback! I've submitted the third book in the series to my fantabulous Samhain editor - just waiting to hear now!)

Do Your Part!

I’m a writer, but I was a reader first—and I still am. To me books are wondrous things. I love the feel, the smell, the look of a paper book. But I have to admit those sleek ebook readers kinda turn me on too. Paper or screen, books are magic.

My first novel, Shadows of Evil, was released in electronic format in May of last year. The print edition was released last Tuesday, March 31, giving everyone the ability to buy the book in their preferred format. In honor of this release I’d like to encourage everyone to buy a book this week—and not even necessarily mine!

I would like to point out that when you buy a book:

You help the economy. It’s not a big expense, as expenses go. Support the road to recovery—and enjoy yourself while you do. After all, books are cheaper than a movie—and give you many more hours of pleasure.

You support publishing. Don’t want to support a big company? Buy from a small press. Either way, you’re doing your part for the future of books and reading.

You help support literacy. Because there are so many things today to take the place of reading for pleasure—movies, the Internet, games, cell phones, etc. It’s easy to downplay the importance of books. Every time we buy a book, and read it, we support the idea that books and reading are important.

You support your favorite authors. Authors are feeling the economic crunch just like you are. If you don’t feel the big names need your money, then buy a newer or less well-known author’s works. Very few of us manage to live on our writing income. Or buy the big name because you love them. Keep Steve and James and Nora in business so they’ll keep writing.

To get you started on this buy-a-book effort, allow me to point out that there are some very interesting covers to the right of this post. Feel free to check out any (or all) of them. Of course, there is one I feel especially connected to—Shadows of Evil by…me! I’ll give you the blurb—just as a public service, you understand.

Blurb:
For Kia Wolfe, moving to an isolated mountaintop is an act of independence from her demanding family and ex-fiancé. She’s literally dreamed about the regal old house for years, and for the first time in her life she feels at home. She’s here to stay, even though the house’s history of violent deaths is enough to scare off most people.

Garrett McKnight, owner of the contracting firm Kia has hired to renovate her house, is wary of the new resident. Emotionally bruised and battered by a self-centered ex-wife, he can’t get around the fact that there’s something about Kia that both attracts him and sets him on edge. And when Kia dabbles in a bit of Wicca, accidentally unleashing a hidden evil, it’s tempting to walk away and leave her to her to her fate.

But he can’t. Not when four people have died in that house.


Shadows of Evil
© 2008 by Cheryel Hutton
Available from Samhain Publishing
ISBN: 1-59998-949-2 (electronic edition)
ISBN: 978-1605041537 (print edition)
Buy links:
My Bookstore and More eboook print
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Indiebound.org

Have a great weekend!

Life in the Fast Lane

I am going to rant this lovely Friday, so please forgive me, though many of you will probably agree with me on this.

Driving 101. Left is for the fast line. Right is for the slower traffic. Now, repeat after me“ Left. Fast. Right. Slow.” Again, “Left. Fast. Right. Slow.” It seems some people never got that message.

When you are on a road with two lanes or more going in the same direction, and you find someone behind you that wishes to drive faster than you are going, be courteous and get over into the right lane, especially when you notice a line of cars behind you.

Every day there is someone not even reaching the speed limit on the highway or even state roads and yes, they are hogging up the left lane. It just boils my blood to be behind a line of cars on the highway…in the fast lane…going 50mph.

Are people really that clueless or are they just being jerks?

There is also the subject of those who like to ride the bumper of the car in front of them. What happened to 1 ½ car lengths between you and the car in front of you? Guess some people never learned that, either, thus the reason for so many wrecks. But, that is a topic for another day.

I would love to hear your opinion.

Diane McEntire

Midnight Reborn now avail in print from major bookstores. Barnesandnoble.com is offering a 20% discount. Email me at diane@dmcentire.com for another 10% discount opportunity. Also available in ebook at www.mybookstoreandmore.com.

Midnight Rose, the second novel of The Watchers series is available for ebook download at www.mybookstoreandmore.com

Midnight Revelations, the third book in the series will be available for ebook download on June 2, 2009.

12 Things I Don't Like to See in a Romance

A while ago I ran across a writing article that got me to thinking. I don't even remember the title of the article or where I found it but I do remember it had something to do with knowing what you like to read in a romance.

I thought I could focus my own writing a little better if I wrote down what I didn't like to read. The assignment was interesting and a little eye opening and I thought I'd share it with you. Of course this isn't all inclusive and just because I list something it doesn't mean I'll put the book down. Sometimes, if things are well written and done right, I find that what I normally don't like, I don't mind so much. So, here goes:

1. Bad writing - This is very general and of course completely subjective. But seriously, if something is badly written I can't get past page 10 even if the plot is really compelling.

2. Hero and heroine that are movie stars - I'm not sure why this bothers me but it does. There's just something about a hero or heroine movie star that turns me off.

3. Too many subplots - I read romance for the romance. I don't want other subplots that take away from the romance or the hero and heroine's journey. Generally I don't even like a secondary romance. Just give me the main story and I'm happy.

4. Too many secondary characters - This is much like too many subplots. In my opinion, secondary characters take away from the main characters and the main plot. Not to mention that it confuses me. I can never remember who they all are and how they all fit together.

5. Too much sexual tension that it overshadows the plot and becomes unreal - I read romance for the romance, like I said. But it has to be realistic. I get tired of hearing about how good looking the hero is or how sexy the heroine or how they just want to fall into bed together. Give me a good story. Show me the emotion and some plot.

6. Hero too beta - I like my heroes alpha. A gentle side is okay but I definitely don't like a hero who stands back and lets things happen to him.

7. Heroine too brat-ish - I find these types of heroine's mainly in historicals for some reason. I picked up a Suzanne Enoch book (and let me note here that I love Suzanne Enoch books, especially the Sam and Rick series). The heroine was such a brat and so horrible to the hero that I was actually rooting for the hero to walk away from her. It was awful.

8. Sexual tension way too soon - Let the sexual tension build. The best romances are when the hero and heroine slowly discover each other. I don't like when you're hit with the sexual tension from page one because by page 100 you're sick of it. Let it build.

9. Hero's too tortured and unredeamable - Sometimes there is such a thing as too tortured. Some things people just can't overcome. For instance a lot of Anne Stuart's books I find the hero's are too tortured and when they're redeemed, it just doesn't seem real. Sometimes I think romance and maybe fiction altogether, plays serious issues too lightly. Sexual abuse is one of them. Yes, it makes for a great conflict but its a very serious issue that can't be resolved in 300 pages and neither should it be.

10. Hero and heroine are apart for too much of the story - Again, this is a romance. How are they supposed to get together in the end when they're apart for most of the story? Not too long ago I put a book down because I was well past page 100 and the hero and heroine had only been together in the first few scenes. They can't fall in love if they're not together.

11. A story that's all about sex - Some people like this and that's why erotic romance and erotica are so hot right now. I don't. And unfortunately there are a lot of romances that in my opinion should be labeled erotic romance because its all about the sex. Let your characters interact and, say, talk to each other every now and then!

12. Contrived emotion that makes me roll my eyes because its in an inappropriate place - This gets me every time. The hero and heroine are in a dangerous situation. The bad guy is after them. They don't know if they're going to get out alive. And yet they feel every touch and they're aroused by every breath. Come on! Let's be realistic here. If you're in a life and death situation you're not thinking about sex. You're thinking about getting out alive. That's all. You've got adrenaline pumping through your system and your body is definitely not feeling like having sex.

So there you have it, the top 12 things I don't like to see in the romances I read. What would you add?

How Do You Feel About....

reincarntion?

Personally, I love the idea of coming back and doing it all over again. Though I have to say, I won't be too happy to do high school all over again - let alone puberty. Of course by the time I come back again they might have pills that shoot you through the process like a Growing-Up Skipper. (Remember that doll? You twisted her arm clockwise and she grew breasts and a waistline.)

I also love to read books about lost loves finding each other again in this lifetime. All right, so call me a mush. I know I'm a sappy, sentimental fool in a tough-chick's clothing, but really I just can't help myself. There is just something so touching and beautiful about getting a second chance to get it right. Or a third, or fourth chance even.

Over the years I've studied many and various topics of parapsychology and one of them is the subject of reincarnation. I've read books by Brian Weiss and Micheal Newton, Raymond Moody and Bruce Goldberg for both research purposes and just because I find the subject so fascinating. Reading detailed accounts from the files of respected researchers only confirms my beliefs that such a fantastic thing is possible. Let's face it, energy is never destroyed, it only takes on a new form. So, why not return to the fold and wait until there is an acceptable vessel that we can inhabit? Do we learn everything we need to in one life-time? I doubt it. There is just too much information out there to make that possible.

I've had a plot and a really awful, horrible, dreck of a manuscript based on reincarnation that I've been meaning to pull out of my to-never-be-seen file and dust off and revamp. I've learned so much about not only the topic but the writing craft since I first wrote the very first draft of that book - long hand!!! The second version was actually done on a computer, but it's bad...so freaking bad I can sometimes smell it stinking up the house. A few years ago, I actually sat down with a notebook in hand and started on page one, word one and started to reoutline the novel. I changed the past from Scotland to the New Jersey Highlands. (Similar topography if you stand at the scenic overlook at the rocky cliffs down into the Delaware River which is really what I require in one scene, the rest could happen anywhere.) - I keep saying, I'll work on that one _______ (fill in the blank). However, so many other projects crop up and take importance over that one.

So, I really do hope reincarntion is real. It's going to be the only way I finish all the story ideas I have tucked away.

-Kat

Knowing, a movie review

Genres: Action adventure, fantasy, and science fiction.

Is life totally random and meaningless? Or is there some predestination, and purpose, behind everything?

Knowing, ponders this question. John Koestler (Nicholas Cage) is obsessed with questions of fate versus free will, because his wife died in a hotel fire.

Knowing opens in 1959, centered a time capsule. A troubled child psychic includes a sheet of paper containing what is presumably random numbers.

Fast forward to present day where we have astrophysicist and MIT professor John Koestler (Nicolas Cage) and his son Caleb (Chandler Canterbury), living together. Of course we are now at the 50th anniversary of the burial of the time capsule, and Caleb ends up with the list of numbers penned by the troubled young psychic.

John is drowning his sorrows in whiskey while trying to teach college class, work as a scientist and raise his son. A drunken John — recently widowed — discovers the meaning behind the numbers. They represent every major national tragedy of the last 50 years — the date, the number killed, and the GPS location.

Breaking it down, the numbers challenge John’s belief in the randomness of life, which he holds in contradiction to his father’s theological convictions.

Knowing starts off fairly predictable as John tries to warn people but no one believes him. Meanwhile his son starts to see eerie visions and hear whispers that are somehow connected.

There is a plot point or two that seem a little too convenient, and some familiar elements from other movies we’ve seen before, but the mystery continues to drive things forward until the big twist in the premise is revealed.

Knowing has a compelling premise that's a little suspenseful, it's also a little creepy. The special effects are great! The train and plane scene are impressive! And the spiritual endings is surprising!

It you enjoyed either The Day The Earth Stood Still, or Signs you're sure to enjoy Knowing.

Heroes I just can't buy...

...In romance novels.

Among the dozens of cops, spies, cowboys and millionaires, there are just a few types of heroes that will keep me from buying a book. Yes, some of it comes from my own prejudices; my own experiences. But I think we each carry some stereotypes around -- ones that are really hard to break.

So here's a list of heroes that I, personally don't want to read about in a romance:

1. The Amish hero -- I'm sorry. I've tried, believe me. I even bought one such book a few years ago. Despite the author's diligent efforts to raise the man to hero status, it just didn't work for me.

Explanation: I live in Amish country... not in the heart of it, but close enough. In general, they are an interesting sect with high ideals and a fantastic work-ethic. But I have a hard time getting past what I've seen in real life to give any fictional Amish hero a chance. The scraggly beards, for one, just kill the idea. And then there are the stories I've heard... but suffice to say, I'm rather shallow.

2. The car salesman -- I don't like pushy, overbearing people. Car salesmen, unfortunately, have this image firmly in place.

3. The politician -- Yes, I've become very jaded over the last twenty years. Politicians are not, in my estimation, glamorous or sexy. I'd much rather have that honest, hard-working cowboy with mud on his boots.

4. The gynecologist -- Do I really have to explain this one?

5. The professional wrestler / cage fighter / boxer / etc -- I hear an uproar in cyberland! But I have a hard time appreciating any man who enjoys beating the hell out of someone else on a regular basis.

6. The pastor / Reverend / etc -- The only type of novel this hero 'works' in, IMHO, is the Inspirational romance. I don't read those very often. In sexy romances, a man of this calling should live his religion, in other words: no sex outside of marriage. Yep, I'm serious. So if he's being true to himself -- to his vocation and beliefs, then fine. I'll give the book a try. If not, he's a hypocrite and I really don't like hypocritical heroes.

Does anyone want to add to the list?

13 Reasons Why Your Book Didn't Final in the RITAs

Is there anything in our little corner of the internet that evokes more angst -- and more ranting -- than RWA's Golden Heart and RITA Awards? Well, there probably is, but since the nominations were announced today (http://tinyurl.com/dmmfpl) I thought it might be a good time to summarize, in a nice, concise list, the most common reasons why manuscripts do not final in the RITA awards.

[[The Golden Hearts, for those of you who aren't part of Romancelandia, are the awards for unpublished manuscripts, and the RITAs are for published manuscripts. Both awards are judged by RWA volunteers in the initial round, and entries are not nominated from all available books. They must be placed in the contest by their authors (or publishers) along with a fee and enough copies to go around. And yes this introduction may look familiar if you also visited my post about the Golden Hearts at The Otherworld Diner. What can I say? I'm strapped for time.]]

(This list presumes your novel is a romance, btw.)

1) Your book was released from a small press or in electronic format. Those books = not allowed in RITAs.

2) Your book was not entered in the RITAs. Authors have to go out of their way to enter--books don't get nominated by other people like they do in the Hugos or the Nebulas.

3) The use of the word "f*ck" in the book caused 3 or more judges to mark it "Not a Romance."

4) The use of the word "qu*eb" in the book caused 3 or more judges to mark it "Not a Romance".

5) When the heroine died in the end but did not return as a corporeal ghost for future love noogins, several of your judges decided the "HEA" was questionable, which affected the score.

6) The hero and heroine found out 3/4 of the way through the book they have the same father.

7) Your kick-ass heroine actually continued to kick ass after the hero was introduced. Including his.

8) The judges noticed that you scribbled out the copyright date of 1997 and wrote in 2008, even though you were really careful and used a fine tip Sharpie. Your book was dinged for being "stale".

9) The meangirl internet haterz (who are also PAN members) torpedoed your score in a vast conspiracy to make sure you never final because they are jalus. (They killed my book! Those bastards!)

10) You accidentally sent in five copies of that cookbook you had printed at Lulu.com of family recipes, and judges had trouble relating to the hero and heroine.

11) The package containing your books was mailed to Rwanda instead of the RWA offices. (The Rwandans enjoyed it quite a bit but since they were not RWA PAN members, their scores didn't count.) http://acronyms.thefreedictionary.com/RWA

12) In order to cut postage costs, your book was not, in fact, mailed to judges at all but was instead displayed at the mall where random passers by were asked to rate the hotness of the cover on a scale of 1 to 9.

13) One of the other finalists hired a top secret contest SWAT team to break into the RWA offices the night of March 24, 2009, and switch out your scores with hers.

BONUS!

14) Several of your judges, intimidated by their towering stacks of RITA entries, marked your 100,001 word novel as "TL", or "Too Long".

***

I posted the top 10 reasons why your manuscript didn't final in the Golden Hearts at The Otherworld Diner.

Jody W.
http://www.jodywallace.com/

Romance at the Sci Fi Con

I spent the weekend at Lunacon - a science fiction and fanatasy convention in Rye, NY. It was just marvelous, but I arrived at a few broad conclusions that might be of interest. First, romance readers often read even more than SF/F readers do, which is quite a bit, indeed. Second, romance readers seem to embrace ebooks and their technology more readily than SF/F readers, which is the opposite of what I would have expected. And third, trying to define what "paranormal romance" is among that kind of group is not an easy thing.

As an example, I was on a vampire panel moderated by Sarah Hoyt (who is a funny and incredibly interesting woman). On this panel, the discussion mostly revolved around the origins of the vampire and it was a really hard sell to try to convince the non-romance writers and readers that vampires could be dashing, handsome heros in romance novels. They had a hard time equating the undead creature of Stoker's original tome with the super hot Alpha-male Carpathians of Christine Feehan's world, as one example. I learned quite a bit this weekend and had a great time talking with readers and other writers.

I should mention that FireDrake will be released in print on March 31st. I did a reading of the Prologe and a bit of the first chapter this weekend at the convention and it was very well received. Also, the last in the trilogy of my vampire novellas will be released in roughly 2 weeks, on April 3rd, from Samhain Publishing. It's called Phantom Desires. The three novellas: One & Only, Rare Vintage and Phantom Desires will be released in a single print volume titled Brotherhood of Blood early next year.